Patient Access Specialist

Northwestern Memorial Healthcare • Sandwich, IL

11d

About The Position

The Patient Access Specialist supports Northwestern Medicine’s patient-first mission by providing customer service and access support throughout patient scheduling and registration. The role follows organizational policies, regulatory requirements, and confidentiality standards, and works with patients, hospital departments, physicians’ offices, and scheduling staff to help patients navigate the NMHC system.

The position involves obtaining and verifying patient demographic and insurance information; scheduling appointments; checking medical necessity, referrals, authorizations, and insurance eligibility; providing out-of-pocket estimates; and documenting accurate handoffs in Epic. The specialist uses online order retrieval and insurance tools, performs real-time eligibility checks, and helps prevent scheduling or registration issues. The role also contributes to quality assurance and process improvement, assists coworkers and new staff, and may cross-train across departments to support coverage. Work schedules may change to reflect business needs.

The listed schedule alternates over a six-week cycle. In weeks 1, 3, and 5, shifts are Monday, Friday, and Saturday from 11:30 AM to 8:00 PM. In weeks 2, 4, and 6, shifts are Sunday and Friday from 11:30 AM to 8:00 PM and Wednesday from 6:00 AM to 2:30 PM.

Requirements

• High school diploma or equivalent.
• 2–3 years of customer service or medical office experience.
• Excellent interpersonal, verbal, and written communication skills.
• Ability to read, write, and communicate effectively in English.
• Proficiency in computer data entry and typing, including the ability to type 40 words per minute.
• Basic computer skills.
• Ability to multitask.
• Customer-service orientation.
• Strong organizational, time-management, analytical, and problem-solving skills.

Nice To Haves

• Additional education.
• Additional language skills.
• Healthcare finance and/or healthcare insurance experience.
• Knowledge and experience in a healthcare setting, especially patient scheduling and/or registration.

Responsibilities

• Provide patient-focused customer service and foster a cooperative team atmosphere.
• Respond to questions and concerns, escalate extraordinary issues, and use service recovery skills to resolve service breakdowns.
• Maintain patient confidentiality in accordance with HIPAA and follow department, hospital, regulatory, and compliance requirements.
• Collect and verify patient demographic information and the minimum data required for complete registration.
• Schedule and direct patients through NMHC systems, including outreach to patients to schedule appointments.
• Perform medical necessity checks, communicate appointment options when requirements are not met, and inform patients of issues securing financial accounts.
• Provide out-of-pocket estimates when requested.
• Communicate with patients about physician referrals, insurance referrals, consultations, and authorization numbers.
• Interact with hospital departments, physicians’ offices, internal customers, and coworkers to resolve operational issues and support patient care.
• Use online order retrieval systems to verify or print patient orders and online tools or phone calls to verify insurance eligibility and benefit levels.
• Run real-time eligibility checks, follow out-of-network policies, and document accurate handoff instructions and notes in Epic.
• Use computer applications efficiently and send clear, accurate, and grammatically correct Epic messages and telephone encounters.
• Review appointment details, test requirements, preparation instructions, conflicts, time and location, order documentation, and duplicate patient records to prevent visit issues.
• Analyze account activity, identify problems, and initiate appropriate actions or resolutions.
• Monitor registration, scheduling, and insurance verification for compliance with quality standards, adjusting processes as needed.
• Participate in quality assurance reviews and departmental quality improvement activities.
• Suggest process improvements that enhance customer service and operational efficiency.
• Use organizational and departmental resources efficiently and understand applicable quality metrics.
• Assist with training and share workflow information with new staff and coworkers.
• Manage work efficiently, complete assignments on time, adapt to changing schedules and healthcare policies, and perform other assigned duties.
• Attend relevant meetings, which may involve walking within the NM campus.

Benefits

• Tuition reimbursement
• Loan forgiveness
• 401(k) matching
• Lifecycle benefits
• A range of benefits intended to support physical, emotional, and financial well-being and provide protection for unexpected life events

What This Job Offers

• Job Type: Full-time
• Education Level: High school or GED